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Mike Marsh: The real mandates of the 2015 election

By Mike Marsh

Posted:
11/14/2015 07:35:35 PM MST

The two real mandates from the 2015 election are: 1) The city of Boulder ruled that Citizens United trumps its local election rules; 2) Any future citizens' initiatives that seek greater fairness regarding industries that profit, at the expense of the community, will face unlimited opposition money, attack ads, and deliberate attempts to confuse voters.

The developers won.

With massive funding, repeated mailings, and misleading push-polls, the growth and development lobby convinced affordable housing constituents and local humanitarian groups to vote against their own interests, ignoring the fact that measure 301 provided a 100 percent funding mechanism for affordable housing.

Developers now have free reign over Boulder (and our local government). While City Council toys with impact fees, it will lack the courage and conviction to actually apply fees covering the full, true costs of development to the city and its taxpayers, as calculated by consultants like Tischler-Bise. Despite measure 301 opponents' specious claims of "endless litigation," none of Tischler-Bise's 900 impact fee calculations for cities have been successfully challenged. The issue isn't a legal one. It's whether council will have the political courage and integrity to assess true impact costs. (I'm skeptical, given the new, more pro-growth council.)

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Citizens must continue subsidizing the increased infrastructure necessary to support developments that net developers huge profits. Rather than developers paying their way regarding the societal costs resulting from their projects, those costs will continue being the burden of Boulder citizens. Contrary to popular myth, many such citizens are not wealthy, despite their purchasing a home here 10 or 15 years ago. Many are moderate income individuals, struggling as much as others.

Homeowners don't "realize" equity in their homes until they sell. If they stay for years, as many do, they simply pay often-large, difficult mortgage payments for up to 30 years. Even after tax deductions for interest, these monthly mortgage payments frequently equal or exceed high rents in Boulder.

But homeowners have become Boulder's new vilified class. People assume homeowners are "wealthy, privileged, elitist, and uncompassionate," with little knowledge of their actual circumstances (which may include verging on defaulting on their home loans). If stereotypes with the same amount of pre-judgement were leveled at any other citizens, it'd be considered unacceptable. However, Boulder has a new double standard. This anti-homeowner stereotype is subtly supported by city planning department literature, website, "workshops," and "surveys." Will the new City Council end this, and remind people that we're all in this together and many Boulderites struggle, whether they rent or own?

Citizens United, welcome to Boulder. The ultra-pro-developer Boulder Chamber of Commerce ignored election law which precluded entities like it that are under a paid contract from the city, from lobbying on local election issues (for obvious reasons). The Chamber also didn't register as an issue committee, as required by local election law, before relentlessly lobbying against 301 (and 300).

But the Chamber's attorney invoked Citizens United, claiming the Chamber is a corporation, and corporations are people. And therefore unlimited political spending/lobbying is simply protected individual free speech. Citizens United at the local level will be one of the real legacies of this election, thanks to the Chamber of Commerce and One Boulder.

And the city of Boulder caved. City Attorney Tom Carr put up absolutely no fight to the Citizens United conquest of Boulder. Supposedly "progressive" Boulder groups rejoiced that Citizens United won the day. (Recall also, Carr said 301 wouldn't affect residential remodels, until it was in danger of passing, at which point he changed his tune, in one of the most political acts ever by a Boulder city attorney).

And the Camera crowed. The day after the election, Dave Krieger, editorial page editor of the pro-development Daily Camera, jubilantly crowed. Whereas, I'm canceling my subscription because I feel Boulder now lacks an independent newspaper. The Camera ran photos of Toor and Tayer high-fiving on election night. Whereas, at the Civil War's end, Lincoln urged against punitive gloating, saying "With malice toward none, and charity toward all..." But this election's"victors"and their newspaper resemble George W. Bush proclaiming, "I've earned political capital, and I'm gonna spend it now." Whereas, only 28,000 voters voted, and four in 10 favored 300 and 301, despite a Koch Brothers style onslaught misleading voters with such falsehoods as you can't remodel your kitchen under 301.

In the future, concerned citizens will face very long odds against avalanches of funding from profiteering interests. The well-funded misinformation onslaught against 300/301 was just the beginning.

Mike Marsh was a spokesman for ballot issues 300 and 301. He lives in Boulder.

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